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Well , well , well ! Stubb knows him best of all , and Stubb always says he’s queer ; says nothing but that one sufficient little word queer ; he’s queer , says Stubb ; he’s queer — queer , queer ; and keeps dinning it into Mr . Starbuck all the time — queer — sir — queer , queer , very queer . And here’s his leg ! Yes , now that I think of it , here’s his bedfellow ! has a stick of whale’s jaw - bone for a wife ! And this is his leg ; he’ll stand on this . What was that now about one leg standing in three places , and all three places standing in one hell — how was that ? Oh ! I don’t wonder he looked so scornful at me ! I’m a sort of strange - thoughted sometimes , they say ; but that’s only haphazard - like . Then , a short , little old body like me , should never undertake to wade out into deep waters with tall , heron - built captains ; the water chucks you under the chin pretty quick , and there’s a great cry for life - boats . And here’s the heron’s leg ! long and slim , sure enough ! Now , for most folks one pair of legs lasts a lifetime , and that must be because they use them mercifully , as a tender - hearted old lady uses her roly - poly old coach - horses . But Ahab ; oh he’s a hard driver . Look , driven one leg to death , and spavined the other for life , and now wears out bone legs by the cord . Halloa , there , you Smut ! bear a hand there with those screws , and let’s finish it before the resurrection fellow comes a - calling with his horn for all legs , true or false , as brewery - men go round collecting old beer barrels , to fill ’ em up again . What a leg this is ! It looks like a real live leg , filed down to nothing but the core ; he’ll be standing on this to - morrow ; he’ll be taking altitudes on it . Halloa ! I almost forgot the little oval slate , smoothed ivory , where he figures up the latitude . So , so ; chisel , file , and sand - paper , now ! CHAPTER 109 . Ahab and Starbuck in the Cabin . According to usage they were pumping the ship next morning ; and lo ! no inconsiderable oil came up with the water ; the casks below must have sprung a bad leak . Much concern was shown ; and Starbuck went down into the cabin to report this unfavourable affair . * * In Sperm - whalemen with any considerable quantity of oil on board , it is a regular semi - weekly duty to conduct a hose into the hold , and drench the casks with sea - water ; which afterwards , at varying intervals , is removed by the ship’s pumps . Hereby the casks are sought to be kept damply tight ; while by the changed character of the withdrawn water , the mariners readily detect any serious leakage in the precious cargo . Now , from the South and West the Pequod was drawing nigh to Formosa and the Bashee Isles , between which lies one of the tropical outlets from the China waters into the Pacific . And so Starbuck found Ahab with a general chart of the oriental archipelagoes spread before him ; and another separate one representing the long eastern coasts of the Japanese islands — Niphon , Matsmai , and Sikoke . With his snow - white new ivory leg braced against the screwed leg of his table , and with a long pruning - hook of a jack - knife in his hand , the wondrous old man , with his back to the gangway door , was wrinkling his brow , and tracing his old courses again .
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